SAN BERNARDINO - Eisenhower High School basketball coach Steve Johnson planned to drive from the north end of town to Costco on the south end to buy gas, use the restroom and buy a hot dog Monday night.

But when he realized he had to use the restroom more urgently than he initially thought, he made a pit stop at Seccombe Lake Park - a move that proved to be a mistake.

In the five minutes he was there, an armed robber approached him and shot him several times, police said.

"He didn't quite make it to the restrooms," said San Bernardino police Sgt. Gary Robertson. "He did his business and then walked back to his car. While he was sitting in his car, he was confronted by the armed suspect," Robertson said.

The gunman demanded the 47-year-old Yucaipa man's wallet. When Johnson said he didn't have it, the gunman opened fire.

Johnson remained hospitalized in fair condition Wednesday at Loma Linda University Medical Center.

He was conscious and his vital signs were stable, said Herbert Atienza, spokesman for Loma Linda University Medical Center.

"It's not a life-threatening situation," Atienza said.

Police visited the popular coach Wednesday to re-interview him.

"He's talking, he's coherent," Robertson said. "We were able to carry on a meaningful dialogue with him."

But so far, they have not been able to find any witnesses to the shooting. "We asked him, `Are you sure that's the reason you went there?' And he stayed to his story, that he went there to use the facilities," Robertson said.

Johnson told police during the interview that he parked on the north side of the park off Seventh Street shortly before 8 p.m.

He intended to use the restroom at the park, but couldn't make it there in time. He ended up urinating near a tree, and returned to his car, Robertson said.

While tuning his radio, a man approached his vehicle, opened the front passenger door and demanded Johnson's wallet.

Johnson said the encounter lasted two to three minutes. Johnson said he initially just saw the gunman, but told investigators he saw two other men fleeing with the shooter through the park after the shooting.

Because the incident happened so quickly, Johnson was unable to provide enough detail for police to produce a composite sketch of the shooter.

"He saw him just for a split second," Robertson said. "It was in a darkened area. He looked like a light-skinned black male, maybe in his 20s."

Johnson also told detectives that he saw other people at the park near the baseball field at the time of the shooting, but officers have not been able to find them.

The shooting shook the Rialto public school community, where the coach was inducted into the Rialto Sports Hall of Fame in 2011. He also was chosen as the The Sun's and Inland Valley Daily Bulletin's Coach of the Year in 2009 and 2010.

His strong seasons have underpinned his accolades.

Eisenhower won California's Division II state title in 2009 with a record of 32-3 - the first San Bernardino County boys basketball team ever to reach a state title game.

The district pledged on Wednesday to help police get to the bottom of what happened Monday.

"The district will cooperate with the San Bernardino Police Department as they investigate this case," district spokeswoman Syeda Jafri said. "We hope that those who attacked this high-profile and successful veteran coach and teacher will be brought to justice."

Assemblywoman Cheryl R. Brown, D-San Bernardino, issued the following statement about the incident:

"I am saddened and shocked by the attempted robbery and senseless shooting of Eisenhower Coach Steve Johnson. We, as a society, cannot remain inactive to the consistent increase in violence in our country. We must all engage in putting a stop to the violence in our communities. This can only happen when a community decides to do something to create an atmosphere of safety. Laws and regulations alone cannot accomplish it. During my tenure, I will do everything I can to promote a safe environment that advocates resolving our differences, issues and problems by nonviolent means."